OCR Text |
Show I The Home Harmonious. A Table Unequaled for General Utility, By Anita de CampL 1 iH " ECENTLY L was called upou to 1 1 fl crltlctzo a room that had been rc- fl r decorated, and refurnlshtd. It fl "was a. sitting' Toom in the home oC J? ,. . a. trim middle ased New England ! hR '.vvornan. Everjthinr in the room was U j&gfiiftacM personified. The furniture was In RSofl, the- rugs well chosen, the drap- tfljn erics nd wall paper correct. Tet ther a Hccmed to be somcthhiffwrongaboutthat room. wH The housewife felt It and so did I 1m- nn mediately, but It took, ecvcral minutes' ill purrlinffbefore I realized that whatsrave 9 to the place Us suggestion of stiffness I o closely approaching real discomfort ! I was that it totally lacked perquisites of ! Any kind. It had the dcadllness of a..room that Is I never actually lived In. It was entirely lacking In personal touch. There was i nothing to bespeak the taste, ljablts, or ! character of those who dwelt In It. If U had only had a cushion among the others that looked as though it mlsht have I been worked by the fingers of a friend If there had been a rack of magazines or a tabic with some favorite book open i face down upon It If there had been a musical instrument or a set of golf , sticks In the corner, or a bit of sewing, I or ewn a bird, or a box of ferns some , spirit might have breathed into it. But as it was, In spito of the fact that it ' was faulllesely as well aa 'expensively I 1 furnished, It was as llfelcssr as a was lay- figure well colffcd and Paris gowned, smiling a stuck-on smllo from behind the plat glass of some store show window. win-dow. Among the xtran that arc most desir able adjuncts to a sense of comfort at the home, are a. variety of small tables. Hardly can a room be che-erfully zt-i zt-i tied without at least one small table in 1L It may be a little reading table at the htad of the bed, or a tcakwood stand , H near tho window a card table or one t write on. Ot all the mall tables put on the mar- Hi ket this y.car none can equal In general HI utility as well as seemllncss the combl- Hj nation table tea wagon. Such a piece ' H of furniture, though It may be called ; VI an extra. Is fairly Indispensable In the i H average house, particularly where no iH maid or but on maid Is employed. ; D The new type of tea. wagon has a top W tray, with a good sized drawer beneath Hi it. In the center Is a shelf, eo that papers H and magazines ordinarily kept on top wM may bo hurriedly cleared ofT, and lower ..'It down Is still another cased-in chelf. ill Sooner or later some enterprising raan- ; If uxacturer will make such a tablo with-a I drP leaf at either sldo. With such an I 11 Idjustmcnt, a table of this sort could be n laden with hot diBhes In tho kitchen, and ; wheeled Into the llvlnc room. The leaves j beinc set up would enlarge It sufficiently ; II for two or four persons to dine at It com- ! l forubly. if the leaves dropped from ; f ach B,de- sraall drawer could also he ! Ml placed at either end. ! St ,Lh mak-uP tab' ' the latest tempta- n 2r,ncn ho cnjo5r th use f fine m toilet arUcles, and who. realizing nou- the I II almost prohibits price of imported : I "f!m,3' lotlon"' and cosmetics, are care- !. I I iey! P UCh lreMUrCa Under tod ; I The make-up Uble 1. .bout as high 'as 1 an ordinary dress!. UWi. bufmeasurcs ' I 1 M "mmm'mmammmtm on y twelvo by fourteen Inches across. It looks like a box on legs, and that really la about what It Is. The lid aa up und is lined with a mirror. In the body oC tbo box are little compartments for tho various powders, perfumes, etc.. and the lid fastens down with a fine spring lock. Iho whole thing is easily lifted to bo carried near to wherever tho light Is best. Students and lderly people enjoy tho chair reading table. It Is made like a shelf on legs, with a piece that props up o in tho middle, .holding tho book, after the fashion of the music rack on the piano. The leg9 of this little tablo are at either 2nd of the shelf-shaped piece, so that tho vvholc thing can be pulled quite astrldo of tho rcadcr'a chair or couch. The same pattern Is used for a reading Cn bed stand. Tho shelf In this case Is a trlflo longer than the width of the bed, and the legs lift It high enough to clear the bed well. Sick children approclato a tabic at this ,'iind, on which they can '. f placo their toys without being weighted down. Nests of tables arc tho fad of the day and just at present they are most Iti demand In brilliant colors. Brilliant Indeed In-deed are the delicate spindle leKged nests of tables lacquered in vivid red. emerald green, black, purple, or yellow. Folded up and put aoldfc. :hfy are not: so noticeable, but when they are pulled out and scattered about t'.io room, they icmlnd one of nothing sb much as a tulip bed In full bloom. They are gay and protty, particularly adaptable, of course for afternoon card parties, and they aro not expensive. Attractive Japanese ones in black lacquer, ornamented with silver dragons, may be had for as "ttlcas $13 a mi. Women who admire colonial furnlsh-jngo furnlsh-jngo need only to be reminded of Iho many charactorltfflc small tables of colonial times to recall the charm of theso quaint pieces. Tho piecrust tabic, round topped I with a little rim, will never lose Us popu larlty, nor will the gate log or the Martha "Washington. The card tablo that folds in tho middle, collapses, and stands shelf-Uke shelf-Uke against the wall la another of tho colonial sort, doer to tho hearts of our forbears. So much for small tables. Certain It Is they Impart a charm of their own to their surroundings. Don't you think that any npuse would be downright bleak if it had not a single little table in it? |